NEVER GIVE UP

'Survival can be summed up in three words  - 'Never Give Up'.  That's the heart of it really. - Just keep trying.' ----Bear Grylls.

I opine, life is full of opportunities. Only thing that decides what we are largely depends on how we respond.  Let's assume somebody knocks at the door. You open it ajar and seeing somebody peeping into ask, 'who are you.'  'I am the Opportunity.'  You are dazed, remain motionless as a statue, spell bound. Seeing your inaction the Opportunity smiles at you pitifully and vanishes never to come again with that offer which you had sought after much.  Hence, the elderly saying,  'One must grab the opportunity by it's forelocks.' Be alert! Be responding at the opportune time! Seize the situation to your advantage.  Even in cases of endangering of life is involved, how  the  survival is made possible with the unflinching mantra of timely 'response.' - the spirit of  'Never Give Up' - is well depicted in the following two short stories. 

'In a village a fake sadhu was entrenched for quite long time.  Thanks to the gullibility of the innocent villagers, they trusted his prophecies, sweet words of succour and looking after him well about his daily needs, even though the happenings were of fifty fifty chance. One day a virtuous sage entered the village as a part of his itinerary and decided to stay for a brief period. As the sage's blessings were proving to be correct, the villagers started to gather around the sage, neglecting to look after the fake sadhu. Unable to brook this humility, the fake sadhu went to the sage and demanded that only one among the two should stay in the village. The sage was asked to take up the challenge of a test by the sadhu. If the sage won the test he could continue to stay and the sadhu would quit the place. But if the sage failed the test, he should immediately quit for the sake of the sadhu. The sage accepted the challenge. On the appointed time of the test, the sadhu kept his both hands behind his back and told the sage that there was a bird in his hands. The question was whether it was live or dead. If  the answer of the sage was correct  he would stay or else he was to quit. The clever intention of the sadhu was that if the sage told the bird was live, he would quickly smother it's neck and would say 'see, the bird is dead!' And if the sage told that the bird was dead, he would show the live bird in his hands. The sage thought for a while and declared, " The life of the bird is in your hands!" Thus won the test.'

' In a remote forest of Africa, a foreign tourist lost his bearings and was captured by the cannibals. They produced him before the Head of the clan. Rejoicing at the thought of a foreign human flesh, he told to the ill-fated tourist,  "Having become our captive, you are sure to lose your life now. But I give a chance - make a statement about any subject on the earth.  If it is True, you will be cooked into soup. If the statement is False, you will be deep-fried. But if your statement  can neither be True or False, then I promise you that you would be freed without being harmed."  Then the tourist pondered for a while and responded, "Oh The Merciful King ! Thank you very much for the chance for life given to me. My simple statement is this, 'You are going to Deep-fry me!".  The King was puzzled , consulted with his ministers and finally appreciated the thoughtful response of the tourist and said, 

"That's it! You have put us in a fix cleverly. For, if we really intend to deep-fry, your words become 'True' for which our verdict should be to make soup of you. And if we intend to make soup of you, your words  prove False, for which our verdict would be Deep-fry. So, we can do neither  of the two acts. Be happy,you are set free as per our commitment!"'

That's it! Such motivational and inspiring anecdotes as these will remind the following beautiful statement by Lou  Holtz,  "Life is ten percent what happens to you and ninety percent how you respond to it!"

Om Shanti!